Home to Home

Aug 2020

Pencils, sketching papers. 390×543(mm)

When I finished this artwork, I wanted the buildings and sails to look more realistic, so instead of adding shadows, I used a paper pen and rubbed on the pencil strokes which might make it looks like having a bit of shadow while keep the painting tidy and clear.

As to the title Home to Home, one home is my hometown, where I am from. The other home represents Canada, where I am now and feel like staying at home. I had met so many amazing people in Canada,and LCS means more than a school for me but more like a big family, where people care about me. I used the iconic buildings from both cities: Suzhou and Toronto.

I use the sail as a vehicle for the idea of 2 cities. First, sailing is my favourite sport. Second, as all know, there two sides of a sail, one towards front, and another towards back. I drew the representation of Canada on the front side which means the second home I am in right now. For my hometown, I draw it on the back of the sail, which means the past. The sailboat is moving forward which means life won't stop, you are courageous enough to look forward to the future.

To make even more contrasting, I put the iconic maple leaf on the side of the second home, while drawing the clouds in the back using the style of traditional Chinese water colour painting. The effect seems good.

So far I think the artwork is successful, and it has presented my idea and showed my identity. One thing I really regret for is that I didn't take a lot of process photos because I was really focused on drawing.